Pasadena Unified School District COVID-19 Updates

Graduations

May 1, 2020

Our high school seniors are living a year that none of us ever imagined for them. We know that our seniors and their families/caregivers are feeling the loss of these special times with friends, classmates, and teachers. We feel that loss with them.

We held out hope that we could hold traditional in-person graduation ceremonies as scheduled at the end of May. But based on the senior survey results and taking into account public health concerns, we have instead planned virtual pre-recorded live-streamed graduation ceremonies in June.

We are fully committed to celebrating our seniors with this online ceremony and will plan an in-person event when the Governor and public health authorities determine it is safe to do so.

For our virtual graduation, PUSD has contracted with School Shine to create an event that will be live-streamed June 24-26. High schools will arrange for the distribution of caps and gowns, photos, and other arrangements for graduations. Those details are being shared with seniors. We will provide you with details about the production of virtual graduations at a later date.

At this time our committee is planning celebrations for rising 5th and 8th graders. Although these will not be formal promotions, we will celebrate our students.

Updated May 21, 2020:

The school year ends on May 28, and our schools are working on ways to celebrate our students while keeping the health and safety of our students, staff, and families as our top priority.

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health Officer’s Safer at Home Order prohibits all public and private gatherings. To limit the spread of COVID-19, the Order does not allow any exemptions for promotion and/or graduation gatherings of any type in order to limit the spread of COVID-19. This means all in-person promotion/graduation ceremonies, including the use of cars for drive-through parades, promotions/graduations, or celebrations (even if one student at a time) are considered public gatherings and are therefore prohibited.

Virtual ceremonies and celebrations are permitted and encouraged as a means of commemorating the end-of-the-year events for students and their families.

PUSD’s high school virtual graduation ceremonies will be broadcast on June 24-26, 2020. We are fully committed to celebrating our seniors with this online ceremony and will plan an in-person event when the Governor and public health authorities determine it is safe to do so.

We understand how disappointing it is for all our students to miss the normal end-of-year celebrations during this pandemic.